//------------------------------//
// Creatures of the Night 
// Story: The Nightmare Wars 
// by GigaBowser 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 3 - Creatures of the Night

Asking anypony in the world to describe Princess Celestia would garner the same response 99% of the time. To every pony and every creature all across the lands, she was the same. They would describe her as wonderful, regal, majestic, powerful. They would talk of her coat and say it was like a dollop of gentle sunshine, and that her mane was the cheeriest, most magnificent shade of pink. Her smile was radiant and lifted everyone else's spirits when she entered the room. The Princess would glow whenever she was present, shining like a golden halo upon the rest of the land. Inspiration and bravery came forth from nothingness at the mere sight of her.

Not a single word of that was true any longer.

What had once been the mighty Princess Celestia was now a beaten, battered pony. Her coat was now filthy, dirtied and unkempt, and her mane hung limply instead of being carried by some unseen wind. Her colours were faded and her smile was gone. The Princess no longer glowed.

If it weren't for the presence of both wings and a horn, one might be tempted to call her a mere ordinary pony now. Even so, with her horn broken like that, would it be right to even call her an alicorn? I thought not. Armour gone, golden vestments gone, and wings broken. It was only her cutie mark that truly betrayed who she was.

She lay, still not yet within the realm of the conscious, in a filthy, disgusting cell deep within the castle dungeon. Ancient, rusted shackles were clamped around all four of her limbs, with a fifth smaller one tightened around the base of her horn. The mud and dirt of the cell had lovingly applied themselves to her fur, hiding even more of the once-pristine white coat from the eyes of onlookers.

Her eyes gently fluttered open and she let out a quiet grunt of confusion. She grit her teeth and clenched her eyes shut, moaning at whatever aches and pains she was feeling. She was incredibly weak, her head swaying like a drunkard's as she tried to hold it up. She began to stand, but every movement was slow and painful. She eventually settled for simply sitting, leaning herself against the cell wall for support.

Her tired eyes gazed over her surroundings. She seemed disoriented and confused, a hint of disgust seeping into her expression from seeing the neglected state of the cell. As she moved, she heard the clinking of her chains and looked down to see her bindings. The sight made her frown worriedly.

"It hurts, doesn't it?"

Celestia's head shot up, though the movement clearly caused her a wave of dizziness. She fought through it, though, and looked out from between the bars of the cell. Her eyes fixed on me, sitting across from the cell door and watching her.

"It hurts when you aren't on the winning side," I continued, my expression neutral, "It hurts when you're shackled down…Unable to move, unable to break free." My lips curled into the tiniest of smirks. "It hurts when those you love knock you down."

"Luna…!" she blurted out and immediately tried to get to her hooves again. She did so in such a way that all of her restraints pulled back on her and dragged her rear right back to the ground.

My hardened gaze returned as I slowly stood up myself. "I will give you one, and only one warning. Refer to me as Nightmare Moon, and nothing else."

There was much confusion written across the other alicorn's expression. "What…What have you-?" She was interrupted, however, by a massive coughing fit. For nearly a minute, Celestia's face was screwed up in pain as she held her hooves to her chest and nearly coughed up a lung.

"I would advise you to save your strength," I spoke evenly, staring down at her like a headmaster might stare down at an unruly student. "I have taken from you all of your alicorn magic except for your immortality. That, I have graciously allowed you to keep, so that you may bear witness to my eternal rule."

Her coughing ceased and she sucked down a few deep breaths before she turned her gaze up towards me again. The look on her face was quite interesting, to be honest. Her furrowed brow and half-frown seemed to show that she was nervous or anxious, but not necessarily afraid of me. 

"What have you done…?" was all that she said.

I smirked at her, holding back a chuckle. "Why don't you tell me? What is the last thing you remember?"

Her face darkened and she broke eye contact. "I…" she said in an almost inaudible voice, "I was defeated…"

"Such a momentous occasion. I am glad you remember it."

"You struck me down…"

"I did more than that, Celestia. You do me an injustice."

Her gaze returned to me, but she said nothing. 

I smiled back. "I can tell that you can feel it. You feel such emptiness inside, don't you? I've taken all of your power from you, Celestia. It is mine now." I focused just a tiny fraction of my magic and a black aura erupted around me. Celestia eyed it cautiously. "And even if you still had your magic," I continued, unable to stop a little bit of glee from slipping into my speech, "you wouldn't be able to do much with it, now would you? Not with a horn like that!"

Celestia's eyes briefly drifted up to her broken horn, still tinted red with dried blood. It didn't seem to faze her, considering it paled in comparison to my possession of her magic anyway. With less than half broken off, it would grow back on its own eventually. Maybe two or three years.

She looked back at me with a cautious look in her eyes. "Why have you not…destroyed me…?" she asked in a low tone.

A raging fire burned in my heart for a few moments, but then I gave her an icy chuckle. "Are you sure you should be asking me that?" I said to her playfully.

Her ears flattened against her head.

"Your life if a gift that you do not deserve," I told her plainly, "I warn you not to make me reconsider."

Celestia let out a huff of breath and steered herself away from that topic. "You must lower the moon…" she spoke to me. It was an emotionless command, her eyes hardened with resolve. "You've no idea what consequences could arise from this! What's going to happen when morning comes?"

I stifled a laugh, grinning and holding a hoof up to my mouth. "'Morning' has already come and gone, Celestia. You have been unconscious for nearly 70 hours."

I could almost hear the sound of her mind simply shattering. Her entire body froze as her pupils shrank to tiny dots. She stared at me in abject disbelief, and then turned to look at the wall to her left. At the top of the wall was a tiny barred window, offering her only a small glimpse at the world outside. The blackness visible through the window was enough to convince her that the moon was still where I had left it.

"You…"

"Yes, Celestia, the night has lasted this long, and it shall continue to last forever. Is it not wonderful?"

"But…but you can't!"

I narrowed my gaze at her. "I can and I have, Celestia."

"You are upsetting the natural balance of-"

"Oh, would you just shut up?!"

She shrunk back slightly from my outburst.

"I sincerely hope you are not so thick as to think you have any say in the matter anymore. There is not a single, solitary thing in the universe that you could do to sway me otherwise. Whilst you remain here in the castle dungeons, the moon shall stand its ground."

For a moment, there was silence and the two of us simply stared at one another. There it was, yet again. That cool, calculating look that Celestia always got. Even now in her darkest hour, she was still trying to keep everything in control. After a minute or two she spoke again.

"Tell me what has happened," she said simply, direct and to the point, "Tell me of the events that have passed since…my fall."

"Very well," I said with a grin, "After returning to the castle and locking you up down here, I used but a fraction of my magic to clear out the castle of its treacherous occupants. The sight of our battle had brought out your little soldiers en masse, but soon enough I made sure the entire castle was surrounded by an impenetrable barrier. I can't be bothered while I prepare things, can I now? I had to redecorate after all." I gave her a playful smirk to accompany that last sentence.

"The Solaris Guard are not pushovers," she spoke, "Powerful though you may be, I suspect they would have put up a valiant fight and at least overwhelmed you."

"Oh, please, Celestia…You insult me," I replied spiritedly, "The most your little warriors managed to do was waste time trying to get back inside. I have no place for such blind fools as them in my glorious nation. They are all either dead or imprisoned in the lower dungeons, where they will rot until they are no more. Resistance to my annexation lasted a few irritating hours and nothing more."

Celestia now had a dark look across her face. It looked like there were a thousand things going through her mind in the span of a minute. When she next spoke, it was in a very low, heavy tone, her eyes drawn to the floor.

"My guard…" She paused, as if unable to bring herself to speak the words. "My guard were…specifically trained to…to take me down…In case the unthinkable should ever happen…" After another pause, she turned to look up at me. "But you…You claim that the entire guard now lay defeated…?"

"You can choose not to believe it," I replied simply, "but I know you better than that, Celestia."

"You…killed them all…" was all she said.

My smile vanished once again as I glared down at her. "I have replaced your army with something that you never had the presence of mind to give to me. A thousand years of ruling, and through it all what did we have? We had your precious Solaris Guard and nothing else. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of ponies dedicating their lives to protecting the glorious solar princess…" I took a step closer and leaned down to glare at her with an even more venomous gaze. "What about me…?"

Celestia, to her credit, was unwavering. "The Solaris Guard was intended to protect you as w-"

"'Intended' is the key word, Celestia. Your guard carried the name 'Solaris'. Through and through, they were dedicated to you and you alone, despite whatever delusions you may have had. Nay, despite my many suggestions, my undeniably sound arguments, I was never provided with my own guard. The Night Guard was never more than 'a silly dream of a silly pony', wasn't it?"

Celestia seemed to have realized where I was going with this. "What did you do?"

I smiled and said nothing, merely stepping aside. As I did, Celestia took notice for the first time of something else that was in the room. Standing guard faithfully at the door were two ponies, both grey in colour and dressed in majestic blue armour. I motioned for one of them to step forward and, like clockwork, another took his place as he departed.

"Wha…?" Celestia's eyes shifted from curious to shocked and then to downright horrified as the pony stepped towards the bars of her cell, where it halted. He was a well-built stallion. Blue-teal armour covered his head and flanks. Across his chest he wore a decorative guard that depicted deep blue flames and a gem in the centre that represented one of my eyes. His coat was grey, just like all of the others, and his tail matched his chestplate in colour.

My frightened captive was paying attention to none of that. Her eyes were drawn to the stallion's more unique features. His ears were larger than a normal pony's, were in a funnel shape, and were topped by tufts of hair. His eyes were strikingly yellow and his pupils formed a thin slit, much like a cat's. Most noticeable, however, were the two jet-black bat wings jutting out from his back.

Celestia seemed to be at a loss for words. Her frightened eyes kept darting across this pony's rather un-pony features. "Wha…What…?" I grinned mirthfully at her stuttering. "What is it…?" she finally managed to say.

I put on a fake frown and said, "Awww, Celestia…You're gonna hurt his feelings! He's not an 'it'. He is a high-ranking Night Guard, and you should treat him with respect." I turned to him and said, "Say hello to Celestia!"

Without missing a beat, the guard took a sudden step forward and hissed at Celestia, showing off its razor sharp fangs. She screamed like a little filly and I laughed.

"What…?!" she murmured once she had her composure back, "What did you do to that pony?!"

I tapped a hoof on my chin. "Mmm…Close, but not quite…" I made a gesture with my head and the guard stepped back, resuming his stoic stance. As I continued to speak, I trotted idly in a circle around him.

"Even the most powerful ruler of the world cannot do so on their own. You of course remember King Sombra? Well, I realized that I needed some…support to assist me and, beyond that, I needed loyal followers. So I thought about it for a long while. I asked myself who, in the entire world, would be most faithful to me? The answer, once it had come to me, was a stroke of pure genius if I do say so myself."

I stopped next to the guard, looking in at my captive. "Tell me, Celestia," I spoke, "What is the first word that comes to your mind when you see him?"

Celestia's anxious eyes darted back to the pony again. After a moment, she replied, "He…seems almost like a…bat."

"Good job, Celestia. A-plus. It was all so simple! Bats are such wonderful, glorious creatures, don't you know? Ever since the earliest days that they roamed this earth, bats have always been faithful to the night. They are creatures of darkness that thrive in the shadows! If there were ever a creature worthy of the title 'undying loyalty'…"

I heard Celestia's voice catch in her throat as she continued to stare at the guard. "Wait…" she said, interrupting me though I let it slide with a grin. I knew what was coming. "Are…Are you saying…?"

"I am, Celestia. Isn't he marvellous?"

Her eyes shot back to mine. "What have you done?! You…You can't have…!"

"Oh, but I have."

"But…That's sacrilege!! This…goes against the basic foundations of nature! You…You can't just change creatures like that!"

"And yet, here he stands," I replied calmly, extending my hoof towards the guard in a sweeping gesture, "As a bat, he was forever loyal to the night…but as a pony, he will be infinitely useful to me. With the body and mind of a pony comes a sense of duty and responsibility! Nothing you could ever say or do would sway him! As long as it is night, he shall remain faithful in servitude to me!" I gave the guard a pat on the back. He didn't respond.

"You've…" Celestia was trembling, an utterly horrified look in her eyes. She couldn't tear her gaze away from the Night Guard that stood nearly unmoving before her cell. "You've created an abomination…"

I scoffed. "Well, that was rude."

"A creature's basic…form cannot just be changed like that. It's unheard of!" Celestia looked like she was going to be sick. "You…can't!! Luna, you can't just make ponies like that!!!"

Quicker than a breath of wind, my expression changed. My gaze narrowed and I set my jaw firmly, glaring at Celestia with utter contempt. I gestured with my head and the guard returned to his post. She was still watching him as he departed, but seconds later I stepped into her field of vision, scowling at her. My horn glowed briefly.

She opened her mouth to speak to me, but whatever she was going to say died on her lips. Instead, she screamed. She curled up on the ground, writhing in pain and crying like a banshee. The fur of her abdomen was stained a deep red colour by her blood.

After the initial spike of pain, she was reduced to seething breaths as she tried to endure the agony. She held her eyes clenched shut, but I stood stoic and stared at her without a drop of compassion in my expression. After a few more seconds, I forcefully yanked the dagger out of her and let it clatter to the cell floor. Celestia cried out in anguish once more.

Heaving painful breaths and holding a hoof firmly on her open wound, she wrenched open her eyes and stared at the dagger. I let my gaze fall down to it as well. It was small and smooth, made of stone. It was in the shape of a simple lightning bolt, jagged and sharp at both ends. I don't remember why I chose such a shape, but I don't think I cared what shape it was at the time.

Then, our eyes met. There was such shock and confusion in her eyes. If I hadn't been so angry, I might have taken pleasure out of her misfortune. She panted a few more times, shivering as she kept her hoof on the wound to try to slow the bleeding. Without her horn, she had no access to the healing spells that she had become so dependent on.

"Wh…" she breathed out, unable to even form a full word.

"You have been warned multiple times, Celestia. You will call me by my true name or, if you desire, 'Your majesty' or something alike. For every time that you utter that name, I will make you bleed."

The colour was draining from her eyes. She was losing strength from her blood loss, but still she kept them focused upon me. Hers was a gaze that quite simply said 'I don't believe it'.

"You will survive," I said, beginning to turn away, "Though you no longer have your magic, you are still as resilient as an alicorn. However, I urge you to keep your tongue in check. I cannot promise that my restraint will always be this grand."

I began to trot away, intending to leave the pathetic pony behind me to suffer. She would be in pain for hours, but I cared little. That tyrant deserved it. I made it halfway to the exit before she called out to me.

"L-" she uttered the first letter, but managed to catch herself. I paused, but did not turn around.

"N…Nightmare Moon…" she finally uttered. It sounded as if it had been a tremendous burden to even utter the name. A small grin graced my lips as I turned to face her.

"What?" I replied bluntly.

The shivering alicorn in the cell stared back at me, her entire belly drenched with fresh blood. It took her a moment to gather the strength to speak, but finally she did. "Please…You have to tell me…What of the citizens? What has happened to those out there in Canterlot? And beyond?"

I slowly trotted back over to the cell door, my grin never fading. "Celestia…" I spoke, just a hint of playfulness in my voice, "I am a very busy pony. Though I would love to go out and frolic with the commoners, I have been busy setting up residence in the castle, preparing my elite guard, and dealing with yours."

Celestia cringed at the mention of my guards.

I narrowed my gaze. "The ponies of Canterlot are of little concern to me as of right now. With your downfall having occurred so recently, they are all still rioting in the streets and crying your name. It is going to take a while to undo your corruption, Celestia. Soon enough, the Night Guard shall enact order and law throughout my kingdom and, in time, the ponies will respect the night."

"'Riots'?!" Celestia exclaimed in horror.

"Mm, yes. Thankfully, my guard were able to sort most things out. It's just a shame about all the casualties..."

Celestia's face grew pale.

I stared directly at her, a dark expression on my face. "Don't be so shocked, Celestia. Casualty is an inevitability of war, remember? It was by your hoof that this became war."

"Lies!"

"I gave you a chance to peacefully surrender and you refused!!"

She paused for a moment, as if flabbergasted. "You…You cannot expect the citizens to respect you after all you've done…!"

"They will come to respect the night! In the griffon territories far to the north, they are ruled by a singular king or, rarely, a queen. One does not become a ruler of the griffon territories without ruthlessness and power. And despite the grand number of rulers they have gone through over the years, what with the countless coups and assassinations, they are still respected for their power, each and every one of them. Songs are written. Statues are erected. Legacies are lain!!"

Celestia had the expression of a fool, but I had no interest in hearing her protests.

"You have poisoned the minds of the ponies of this land. Your lavish, extravagant ways have corrupted them to the point where they have become blind to any ruler other than their precious sun princess. They have become lazy, living a life they think will always be perfect. There is no sense in presenting myself to the minds of the tainted, and so my guard shall enforce order and spread word of my glorious ascension to the throne."

"You are going to destroy Equestria!!"

I did pause at that moment and return my attention to Celestia. She was in an even more pathetic state than when I had stabbed her. Now she was crying like a little foal who had lost her bottle.

"Listen to yourself!!" she pleaded, "You are not only invoking mass panic and riots, but now you are choosing to ignore it and just let it happen! Ponies are dying out there! Despite what your guard may be doing, there is no rule! I shudder to think what is happening in the cities beyond Canterlot!"

"I agree, Celestia" I said, cutting her off, "that more ponies will die than is necessary. And for that, Equestria shall forever hold you accountable."

"Luna, you're a fool!!"

The air rang out with Celestia's tortured cry, another lightning bolt-shaped dagger embedding itself into her side. She slumped to the ground, life draining from her eyes almost as fast as the blood did from her body.

"When the smoke has cleared and the ashes have fallen," I spoke emotionlessly, glaring at her, "I will graciously welcome them into the night, where they all truly belong."

Celestia was barely awake, but she was still staring at me. In all the time I had known her, I had never seen so much fright in her eyes.

"Worry not, Celestia. Equestria shall stand strong under the glory of the moon. I shall finally step out of your shadow and rule this land like I was meant to, surrounded by the ponies who shall respect and admire the night. Though it will take time, I am patient and I am willing to wait."

She was about to lose the battle to stay awake, though she managed to whisper one thing to me before sleep claimed her.

"Equestria…will burn…"

For a moment I stood silently and watched the tears roll down her cheeks. Her body had shut itself down in order to recover. Undoubtedly, she would have learned by now not to refer to me by such an insulting name. Disrespect would not be tolerated, especially not from her.

Finally, I turned and began to depart. Two night guards, who were waiting outside the door, joined me as I walked. I spoke instructions to them and they responded with quick screeches and squeaks. Over time, I planned to improve my magic spells and grant the bats the ability to speak as they became ponies. 

As we ascended the stone stairs I heard the heavy door to the dungeons slam shut behind me, firmly sealing Celestia within.



…



It was many hours later.

I had made my way to the tallest part of the castle and now stood on the highest balcony. From there I had a perfect view of all of Canterlot and, beyond that, the rest of Equestria. Every inch of land that I could see was bathed in the silvery glow of my radiant moonlight. It almost brought a tear to my eye just to see how beautiful it was. 

The moon had been in the sky for nearly 75 hours at this point. A grin came to my visage as I looked out upon the land. "Let's see them try to hide…" I murmured.

Canterlot was not as loud as it had been some evenings ago. I could see clearly amongst the city of Canterlot many of my night guards stationed, and few citizens causing trouble. A few brave souls were even going about their business, delivering food and such. These poor ponies had been tainted by that other alicorn, but now the healing could begin.

The first few hours after Celestia's fall had been simply chaotic. They had all been starstruck when they saw me stand over her defeated form, but Tartarus had broken loose when the Solaris Guard had been forced out. For a brief period, there had been anarchy.

Such a shame. If she had simply stepped down quietly, this all could have gone so much smoother.

Now, however, it seemed as if the populace was gently settling into a feeling of resignation. Their beloved princess had fallen, and with her the sun had died. Sure, they would bemoan these losses for a while, but I was patient if not understanding. These foolish ponies had slept through all of my nights, so they simply did not yet understand its wonders.

They would soon enough, however.

I was a villain in their eyes right now. I was a monster. In the face of devastating loss, it is so easy to place blame on others. Did I deserve it? Perhaps, but perhaps not. What the commoners did not yet understand was that these events could have been prevented. It was by another pony's choice that war had been declared and she had needed to be taken down so forcefully.

So much trouble to simply allow the night to show its brilliance. That damned alicorn preached so much about fairness and equality, but truly she was just a filthy hypocrite. Nopony could see her heinous crimes except for myself, and now she was paying the price.

I gazed out at Canterlot again. This time, I took notice of a few minor struggles between the guard and some rather unruly citizens. Still, some ponies chose to resist it seemed. Those poor, poor souls. Their hearts were black and their minds were crippled, poisoned by Celestia's toxin. I had instructed my guard not to use lethal force unless it was necessary, but the decision was ultimately left up to them. 

I put my trust into the bats, as they put their trust into the night.

Celestia's poison could never truly be eradicated. Though unlike any other before it, this was still a coup. History has shown that even long-lasting successful coups still have rather cunning, violent protesters in its wake. The journey to a peaceful Equestria under the moon would not be easy.

But then again, nothing ever was. Was it?

I turned upwards, and the sight of the moon returned the favor. It was enough to bring back my smile. Whatever difficulties I would be forced to endure through, it was all worth it and it would always be worth it. The moon was on full display. The night could no longer be ignored. 

Despite all the hard work I had been pushing through, I had made sure that the nightscape was especially beautiful for the last three evenings. Some of my best work had been put on display for the ponies of this land, as I thought it would help ease the transition. 

Honestly, I couldn't wait for the fires to die down so that I could go and greet the ponies of the land. After taking some time to get used to the new status quo, I would undoubtedly receive their admiration and reverence. How could one deny the untouched beauty of the night sky? These poor ponies had been forced to sleep through it all, and now their eyes would truly be opened.

Yes…This is how Equestria would stand.